The Prince Returns
by The Obsidian Pen
Summary: A baby in a basket at a doorstep isn't something you normally see, not ever. There's much that can be said about it, the Xiao-Longs will know more than anyone that the baby inside isn't just some run-of-the-mill newborn. Nope, this kid's something else, and the whole world is going to know it soon, for better or worse.
1. Reborn Rethrown

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 **Chapter 1**

 **Hey guys, new story that I thought was interesting to make. Will it be popular due to the character? Maybe, maybe not, but I write just for fun, anyway. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Also testing on shorter-length chapter stories to see how I do.**

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 **A Story Of A Reset, One Where A Blank Slate Is Made; But With The Same Paintbrush, Nothing Of This Character Will Fade!**

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 **Chapter One: Reborn Rethrown**

Taiyang would be the first to admit he wasn't the most rational person, maybe even reckless at times, especially during his younger days with team STRQ. However, what he just heard was a new level of stupidity even if it was an act from his six-year-old daughter.

Looking down at Yang, she looked absolutely ashamed. Not in the way Ruby and she'd do when they got caught eating sweets before dinner, but rather genuine self-hate for what she'd done. She wouldn't even meet his eyes, rather instead alternating between Ruby who was on Qrow's lap sitting off the corner, that was if she just wasn't looking at her own feet.

He knew why she'd done it, why Yang took it upon herself to find their old home. After. . . After Summer died, he only thought of himself and essentially left their two children alone while he grieved. _'You aren't the only one grieving, Tai, you damn idiot!'_ he thought, which seemed like what Summer would have said to him.

When he came home and found that broken picture frame, he knew exactly where Yang went. And when he couldn't find Ruby, he feared the worst. He had never called Qrow so quickly to find them, he was far faster than he was, his only hope to find them in time.

And Tai was right, the Grimm almost killed his daughters if it wasn't for Qrow. With that thought in mind, his mind turned to his daughter, his little dragon. He was furious for what she'd done, what almost happened. It will simmer down to disappointment and then forgiven later, he knew that, but until then. . .

"Yang." The way she flinched at his tone had him backpedal all that he wanted to say, what he wanted to shout at her for almost not only killing herself but her sister as well. He knew, though, deep down he knew that it wasn't just Yang's fault. "I'm sorry."

She flinched again, but in surprise. Was she expecting him to shout and yell? He did, too, but the more he watched his little, boisterous girl cower at his gaze, the more he knew it was only partly her fault for what happened.

"What?" she voiced, sounded confused but worried still.

He leaned down and embraced his daughter, it was the first time he'd done so since the funeral, now that he thought about it. God, he was a terrible dad, but that doesn't always have to be the case. This was, if anything, the wake-up call he needed, thankfully without any more loss than there already was.

"I'm sorry, Yang." He lessened his grip on her and looked to his other daughter. "I'm sorry to you, too, Ruby. I left both of you on your own when you two needed me most." He let go of his daughter, but stayed at her level. She wasn't scared to look him in the eye anymore, though she did rub her eyes from the tears, and he did as well. What a mess of a situation he'd made.

"I'm sorry, dad," she said finally. "I-I just wanted to know about this other woman, my other mom."

Raven, she was never a mom, not from the way she ran out. It was best Yang didn't know about her, not yet. For now, let them remember Summer, let them grieve together for their real mom.

"I'll tell you about her someday." He glanced at Qrow, who looked increasingly uncomfortable at the idea. He was right to, but Yang deserved to know _something_ about the woman who brought her to the world, more so since that's what she wanted. "But later, for now, you two need your rest after what you've been through." Looking at Ruby, she looked half ready to sleep right there. "Gonna stay the night, Qrow?"

"Well, since you're offering, I guess I'll sleep over," he answered, earning a sleepy cheer from Ruby about a sleepover. He wasn't tired, a couple of Grimm wasn't enough to count as training for someone like Qrow, but Tai didn't mind the company from someone older than ten.

What a night it's been. He didn't do anything, and he already felt spent with all the worry and the little relief just now. Tomorrow would be a brand-new day, a day when he'd fix the wrongs he'd done for being a useless father.

Just before he called it a night, someone knocked on the door. It was late in the evening, Tai couldn't even guess who it could possibly be. Neighbors for a noise complaint? They lived in a log cabin in the woods, the closest neighbor was a ten-minute walk away, so not possible.

"You gonna get that?" Qrow asked him, snapping him out of his dazed confusion. Yeesh, he was more tired than he thought.

Shaking his head from that weird episode, he walked over to the door, a little annoyed that someone decided to bother them at a bad time. The moment he saw a face, he'd hear what they have to say and dismiss them as quickly as possible, he just wanted to rest.

When he opened the door, instead of seeing a face, he saw no one. Tai looked around, seeing no one nor even the tells of a person hiding the bushes. If it was a prank, he'd see any of the kids, but instead, he saw no one.

He was about to close the door, but he caught the sight of something lower. When he looked, it wasn't what he expected, not in the damn least. He rubbed his eyes, just in case he was a bit more tired than he thought. Nope, it's still there.

"Well, who is it?" Qrow asked. More like 'whose', really.

Tai picked up the wicker basket and brought it in. "You're not going to believe this."

The basket held a baby in a bundle. Not a baby as though a year old, but less than that, evident from how it was still bald, he could tell as much even if the newborn was covered in blankets.

"What the f-" Qrow glanced at the two children in the room. "-fudge." He picked up Ruby from his lap and had her take his seat, walking over to Taiyang and looked to see the child. "This is a joke, right?"

"I'm still hoping it is, Qrow, really I am." Who even did this? Someone out there was watching too many dramas on TV, and even then, what the hell!?

"Lemme see," Yang said as she bounced on her feet, and for whatever reason he obliged. "Aww, it's a baby." She stuck a finger and played with the baby's lips. "Coochie coo, lil baby."

"Bah," the baby 'replied', sounding annoyed and even looked grumpy. Aww, so adora- Wait, not the time!

Tai moved and set the basket on the table in the living room. His legs gave out and landed on the chair. Seriously, what the hell? The night was just getting full of drama, wasn't it?

"I wanna see, too!" Ruby complained and moved to the table along with Yang, standing on the chair to look into the basket. "Oh, a baby like me!"

Tai let out a breath of amusement as he watched his four-year-old compare herself to one aged less than a year. It was a wholesome scene, actually, not all too dissimilar when he first showed Ruby to Yang.

"Don't be too rough, girls," he said, still feeling a bit weary from all the new updates to his life. He went ignored by his daughters, but he kept watch in case they did anything wrong.

Qrow pulled up and sat on a chair beside him. "You don't see that every day, ey?" he said, from the look Tia gave him, he backtracked. "Okay, never outside of those movies. Like really, a wicker basket and everything."

"I noticed, Qrow." He deflated. "Don't suppose you know of procedure on what to do with movie-trope baby delivery to your home, do you?"

His brother-in-law shrugged. "Orphanage comes to mind." Both their faces twisted at the idea. It wasn't great, but he didn't really know what else to do.

"Can we keep it?" Yang asked as she looked away from the baby. "Can we, pleeeeaaaaaase?" You can always depend on Yang to make adopting a child sound like taking in a stray cat.

"It's not that easy," Tai answered with a tired sigh. "I can't just go and say 'okay, you're my kid now', what if the baby was kidnapped?"

This saddened Yang, and it hurt him to do so, but this wasn't so simple. This is a kid, a long commitment he didn't know he was ready to even handle. Hell, he's still grieving for Summer, only now did realize that he had two kids to take care of after weeks of ignoring them. Not exactly grade-A father material at the moment.

"And if he wasn't?"

Even then, he had to think of so- Wait a minute. "How do you know it's a 'he', Yang?"

She held up a sheet of paper. "Because I can read the paper in the basket, says his name. Sounds like a boy's name, I think, a weird one, too."

A note? How did he miss that? "Just leave it on the table, I'll read it later." Once he finds the energy to do it. "Anything else in there besides the baby and the blankets?" She shook her head. Good, less movie-tropes, the more normal it was, not that this was anything normal.

"Why do you want the kid, anyway, Yang?" Qrow asked. "Don't you know how hard it is to raise one?" He should know, he helped raise them at times. "All they do is vomit, poop, and cry all night."

"Bah!" the baby shouted, as much as a newborn could, anyway. From his slight vantage point, Tai could see the baby looking adorably grumpier.

"See? He's already started." Qrow was trying to keep the attachment to a minimum, because both of them knew the girls won't like what he'll do.

"Bah!" Okay, maybe that wasn't crying, exactly, more like an annoyed grunt.

Qrow looked at the basket. "Honestly, I don't know if the kid is just making random sounds, or he's actually answering me."

"Bah," the baby 'said' as it looked at his brother-in-law. " _Baaaaah~_ "

Qrow turned to Tai. "Might want to watch what you say around him." The baby grumbled. "Seriously, I mean it." You don't normally see a baby in a basket on your doorstep, neither do you see an accomplished Huntsman warning another about a baby. Tonight was full of surprises.

"Is Uncle Qrow scared of the baby?" Ruby asked curiously, having him glare at his niece, though Tai couldn't help but chuckle at his daughter's innocent and emasculating question.

"Only those from women he met once," Tai said, knowing his two daughters didn't know what he meant, but Qrow did, earning a loud 'hey!' in response. He turned to him. "Qrow, can you head out and buy some formula? Just for the night."

He was going to say something about the little jab, but his request shut him up, knowing exactly what 'for the night' meant. His daughters will get upset, but this responsibility was too much for him. Both Qrow and Tai had to teach at Signal, and they can't leave the child to his young daughters.

No, a third child was too much. They'll keep the kid for the night before giving it to the authorities, no more.

"Alright, Tai," he said as he walked out the door. Just before he went out of sight, he turned. "You. . . might want to tell them. Better now than later." And that was that, he left to find a store that's open this late. Leave it to Qrow to delegate that part to him. To be fair, he was the one who should do it, regardless.

With another sigh, he turned to his two daughters that were crowding the basket. Not ten minutes ago they were having an emotional thing going after a near-death experience, now they couldn't have been more distracted. "Yang, Ruby, we need to talk about the baby."

Ruby perked her head. "We're keeping him?" she sounded so hopeful. He thought he'd hear those words when one of his daughters brought home a stray cat. But no, it had to be another person.

"We can't, Ruby," he answered. Her face changed quickly, from hopeful to sad in a snap. He didn't know if this would've been the same face if she brought a dog from the streets and had to say no, but his answer here was not something he can change. "Another kid isn't something I can handle, I'm going to have to hand him to an orphanage."

"But why!?" Ruby cried out. "We can take care of him, all three of us!"

Tai shook his head. "It's not that easy, Rubes. We're only keeping him for the night. Tomorrow he'll find a different home, one that will love him better than we can." He hoped. Orphanages don't really get a good repertoire, but he had enough on his plate as is. The kid will have a better life with someone else.

"B-But, dad-"

"I said no!" She flinched at his tone, this wasn't one he could give ground in.

Ruby turned to Yang for support, but even she knew she didn't have leeway to ask for anything, not after what she'd done. She was only six

"Dad," Yang began. "Maybe we need this." What? "We were always a family of four, maybe this is a sign?" He really didn't like what she was insinuating, but she was quick to continue at his look. "I don't mean to replace mom, that can't ever happen, but what if. . . what if this baby is what we need?"

"This isn't some stray, Yang, this is another person, another life, and you both know I snapped out of being a bad father." What they needed? Did she even know what she was talking about?

"I know, but-"

"No!" he shouted, quieting her. He hated this, denying his girls when he wanted nothing but spoil them, but he needed to be firm now for this baby as well. Summer wasn't here anymore, he needed to make the harsh decisions in her place as well. "Both of you go to your rooms." Ruby wanted to protest. "I can't raise the baby. He'll go to an orphanage and find a family that can, that's final."

Ruby was halfway to crying, and Yang put an arm around her sister. "Come on, Ruby, let's go to bed," she said, trying to sound comforting, then looked to her father. "I'll help her sleep, don't worry." Damn it. . .

He watched as Yang guided Ruby up the stairs to their rooms. Just before they went out of sight, Yang turned and gave him a nod, then went up the stairs. _'She understands. . .'_

Damn him! Yang grew up too quickly in the weeks he'd been an idiot, she was raising Ruby when he should've. In a sense he was proud his daughter would show such maturity, but on another, he was angry more at himself now than he'd ever been.

"I'm sorry, Summer," he mumbled. "I'll make it up to them, I promise." For the weeks he showed them a bad side of him, he'd make it better. He walked to the table with the basket and looked inside. "Now about you."

The baby looked him in the eye. "Bah," the newborn boy said. He didn't really have an expression, too young to really make anything he can discern. The baby had pale skin, oddly so, it should've worried him that it was due to the cold, but it looked natural.

"Here's what's gonna happen." The baby blinked, almost attentively, at least that's what he's going to assume it was. "You're going to stay the night in my room. In the morning, I'll take you to a doctor to check you." Tai sighed. "And then I'll have to hand you to an orphanage."

The baby didn't respond, why would it? Words weren't exactly a newborn's forte, but it sounded like it understood.

"I lost my wife a few weeks back." He already felt weak from just saying that. "Until today, I was the worst father in history, grieving by myself while I left Yang and Ruby behind to deal with themselves." He breathed in deeply. "I made a mistake I shouldn't have committed, and now I need to make up for it, but I can't do that with you here. I'm sorry."

"Bah," the baby answered.

Tai gave a breath of amusement. "Maybe Qrow's right, maybe you do understand what I'm saying."

"Bah."

He chuckled. "Well, if you are, thanks for listening, and I'm sorry, again."

The doors to the cabin opened to reveal Qrow with a paper bag. Considering his little gift from Ozpin, speed was his specialty, he knew he would find a place that's open and return with the items.

"Back with the formula, want me to go make a bottle of the stuff? Can't say I remember perfectly how, but I think I can get by," Qrow said with the bag in one arm.

"Good, that makes one of us," he answered. "Sorry, Qrow, you saved Yang and Ruby, but I need you to do this for me." His former teammate waved the apology away and went to the kitchen.

"It's not a problem, I got this. I'll make two bottles, just in case." He left to the kitchen with the items. "But I get the bed, and you get the couch, okay?" Ah, the bastard. Still, it wasn't a bad trade, so he nodded. Qrow smiled cheekily before going out of sight.

Qrow was likely the only adult helping raise Yang and Ruby before his little grieving sabbatical, but only rarely considering what he and Ozpin needed to do. He taught and Signal when he wasn't on a mission, and that meant he had a workload while Tai was on leave from society as a whole, including his own family.

He sighed before looking back to the baby in the basket, who looked him in the eye again. "It might not taste good considering who's making it, but it's only for the night, maybe even for the morning."

"Bah." What a strange baby.

His eyes went to the paper note on the table that came with the basket. It wasn't filthy like a hobo would find, and thinking about it some more, the basket and blankets the baby was in looked pristine, as though newly bought.

Maybe it was some rich woman's baby that didn't want him any more? Or maybe even a spur of the moment from some teen mom? It's not like these things were expensive or even hard to find. Still, just what a strange set of traits for abandonment.

That didn't mean he wasn't pissed off at the lack of responsibility from these people. He was bad, but at least he didn't give up. If you didn't want the baby, at least don't leave it at some stranger's doorstep like a tool!

Taking a calming breath, he picked up the note and began to read it.

 _'This child is not normal, not in any way. Think of me what you will, but there are better people around that can raise it ten times better than I. I can't do it, I just can't, not with everything going on right now. If I tried, the baby would surely die, and he makes it difficult. He doesn't cry, so I don't know if he's hungry or dirty, sometimes days would pass and I forget he existed, I almost starved him several times from this. No, I can't do it, you'll have to raise him, and I can't risk it with the orphanage, I know what they do.'_

Whoever this was, Tai would've punched him or her in the god damn face, the fucking, irresponsible coward. He seethed from what he read and calmed himself down to read the final note.

 _'Please take care of him, his name is Orochimaru.'_

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 **Yeah, if you knew me, I would never use the frontline main character. I have nothing against them, but side characters like this guy can make the story far more interesting given the right circumstances, hopefully, what I'm making is just that.**

 **Reviews are premium fuel, and this story is a car. Fill 'er up, Scotty!**


	2. Rethought Rebrought

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 **Chapter 2**

 **The AN I wrote for this chapter had a lot of plot points that answered even some unasked questions, but now I decided to let you continue reading and find out. I will say this, though. . . not AU.**

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 **Chapter Two: Rethought Rebrought**

Tai didn't know what woke him up first, the sunlight shining through the curtains he didn't close enough, or the alarm that he swore he heard in his dreams before opening his eyes. Damn sun and damn sounds.

He took in a deep breath, and begrudgingly pushed himself into a sitting position on the couch he slept on. And while he's at it, damn Qrow, too.

Right in front of him was a small table, usually empty and clean as it should've been in the living room, but the wicker basket on top of it had him give a deep sigh from the memories that came back to him.

 _'I thought I'd have to wake up to crying, but the asshole who left him here was right, the kid doesn't make a peep.'_ Beside the basket was a half-empty baby bottle. The kid was hungry last night, but still didn't cry, really unlike anything a baby was supposed to do.

Tai stood up and stretched, then looked into the basket. Almost like synchronized with him, the baby, Orochimaru, as he was named, opened his eyes and looked at him. Not even a grumble or a sound for attention, which had him make some very saddening, and very infuriating assumptions about the kid's life with whoever had him before.

"Good morning," he greeted, the baby not giving him a response. "You hungry? The other bottle's in the fridge, so it's gonna take a while unless you like it cold." No answer. "I'm serious, I really don't know if you understand or I'm just talking to myself." Still no answer. ". . . I'm just going to get the other bottle."

"Bah."

This kid really knew how to time his gurgling, doesn't he?

Looking to the Scroll, it was seven in the morning, exactly when he wanted to wake up, before Yang or Ruby did to see what he'd have to do, and the services he'd need to approach would be open.

He brought the cold bottle of formula from the fridge and brought it to the baby, the old bottle that sat out the entire night no longer safe for him. Tai half expected the baby to reject the chilled bottle, but he didn't care and just drank anyway.

"You're an interesting kid, you know that?" Still no answer, but he wasn't really expecting one.

"Talking to yourself there, Tai?" someone said when they walked down the stairs. It was Qrow, the early bird waking up to get the worm, so to speak.

He shrugged. "Says the guy who was scared of having the baby in his- no, sorry, _my_ room."

"Oi, I was joking, I just didn't want to deal with any crying. Besides, I thought you could use the company down here." He looked to the kid. "You're going to do it, right?"

Leave it up to Qrow to cut the stalling for jokes to get to the serious part. "Yeah, I am." He sighed. "You know I can't keep him."

He shook his head. "I know, I'm just thinking of how Yang and Ruby are gonna be. I'm sure they'll understand later, but until then. . ." Some somberness, he knew.

Grunting in agreement, he moved to the stairs Qrow came down form. "Watch the kid, I'll be going to clean myself up before I head out with him."

"You're going to leave me here. . . alone. . . with the baby who responds at convenient moments?"

"Bah."

Both adults looked to the baby in the basket. Qrow turned to Tai. "I _was_ joking, but really, the kid creeps me out at times."

"Ruby was right, you _are_ scared of the baby."

"Piss off."

Tai just shrugged with a smirk before going up the stairs. But really, the baby did have convenient timing. Again, what an interesting kid.

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"I knew your skin was just naturally white," Tai commented to the baby as he walked to his next spot. After the clinic, a few revelations came to light. "Snake faunus, huh? I see it now."

White skin, oddly shaped eyes, and after the clinic, a mouth that was a little more elastic than a normal human's. When that nurse opened Orochimaru's mouth to check, boy wasn't it a surprise when it stretched a little more than expected. The nurse certainly thought so, even tripped to the floor because of it.

Either way, when he picked himself back up, laughing off the little surprise, he continued the checkup in case of anything. The results? Better than Tai expected of a baby who was ignored. Thankfully, no bruises or signs of abuse, but rather signs of mild malnutrition.

Some unhealthy-looking spots in the rare spot, the eye color being a little off the mark, but nothing some regular formula consumption won't fix. For all the asshole who abandoned him did, it seemed at least he or she _tried_ to be responsible. That doesn't excuse their careless decision in the end, however, not at all.

In the distance, he could see the building he was looking for, one that had him look to the baby with a tinge of guilt. It didn't help the baby looked back at him every time he did that. Orochimaru looked neutral, but to Tai, it was really an idea of what could happen to the kid.

"I don't like it, but it's going to be okay," he told the kid, ignoring the odd glance sent his way for talking to a newborn. "I'm sure you'll be fine." He hoped.

Eyes at the building, it wasn't the biggest on the block. Patch was a small community, especially when compared to cities like Vale, so that came with a smaller population. And being a relatively safe from Grimm and bandit raids, people losing their lives prematurely wasn't a big issue, which meant orphanages weren't so numerous or large.

Unfortunately, that meant little funding went into them.

Hard to find proper resources for them when so little money went into them. They're acceptable at best, regardless if the person in charge had the good heart to help them even with the subpar pay. Most went into food and schooling, so the ones' managing weren't all that well paid.

He had students who were orphans, fortunate enough to show talents that landed them a scholarship, or unfortunate enough to unlock their Aura due to the circumstances that lead them to be orphans in the first place. They knew what it was like with all the issues they had from it, and as a teacher, he knew as well.

He walked through the door and into a kind of empty entrance hall. It looked very school-like, there were the main stairs that lead to the upper floors, which likely where the rooms were.

 _'An orphanage is just a boarding house, anyway. Kids sleep here, but don't really live here.'_ Go to school, come here to eat, survive, then eventually go to sleep, and repeat in the next day. Not exactly a nurturing environment for a young child.

A side door opened. "I swear if you kids ditched class again, you're all in for it." Out stepped a middle-aged man in casual clothes, a little overweight, and rectangular glasses to go with it. He looked like a school teacher if anything, who now looked surprised at the sight of him. "Who are you?" the man asked, but once he saw the basket, it looked like he understood the situation. "Ah, one of _those_ types."

Looks like an excellent start already. "Not my kid," Tai immediately said, though it looked like he didn't really believe it. "Is there somewhere we can talk?"

The man grunted and gestured to the room he was just in. "Talk in my office," he answered, then entered back in it and out of sight.

Tai looked to Orochimaru. "He seems nice, right?" No convenient sound to show the baby listened. Somehow, that already felt like an answer.

With taking the baby's opinion into account, he walked into the office, which was a little larger than he expected it to be. There was no computer or anything, but rather several cabinets and shelves, even a few diplomas framed upon the walls.

"Name's Byrnard Ryker, but just call me Byrn, everyone calls me that so might as well, I'm the manager here," he began gruffly. "So, what can I do you for?" His eyes strayed towards the basket in hand. "Or should I say who can I take off of you?"

With a sigh, Tai took a seat across from the man and put Orochimaru on the other seat. "I'm Taiyang Xiao-Long, and I'm here to give this baby into your establishment." Byrn didn't look endearing of the idea, and why would he? "Also, he's not my kid. Someone dropped him onto my doorstep last night, basket bundle and all."

Byrn raised a brow. "Like some drama crap?" Tai nodded. "You know how weird that sounds, right?" The casual tone of his made it oddly more comfortable to be around. He couldn't help but feel it was just his age showing for being on this job for so long.

"That's not all." Tai dug up the note from his pocket. "This came with him in the basket." He handed it over, watching as Byrn's brow raise higher and higher the further he read.

"Who even talks like this?" Byrn asked, setting down the note. "It's written like the asshole's in theatre." His crass tone made Tai reconsider bringing Orochimaru here, but besides that, there weren't really any red flags that popped up just yet. "With the name of the kid, it might actually be."

Now that he thought about it, the language used in the letter was pretty formal. Maybe it was a rich person who didn't want the baby, it certainly sounded like it if the letter was written this classily.

"Listen, I don't want to do this," Tai eventually said with the millionth sigh, earning Byrnard's attention. "I have two kids of my own, and they recently lost their mother and I made a terrible mistake." He felt the pang in his chest, along with the shame that came quickly after. "They need me, and we can't handle another kid. Just tell what I have to do so I can get back to them and fix things."

For what it's worth, the elderly man was surprisingly calm. Maybe he did actually believe him that it wasn't his kid, or maybe that he didn't care. Regardless, he took off his glasses and set it on the table with a loud exhale.

"You don't have to do anything, really," Byrn finally said. "I'll be the one handling most of the paperwork, you just sign a piece of paper for the record. Hell, you did what most pissants don't stick around long enough to do already."

Tai knew the situation was bad, but really that much? "Is that how, just to write my name for the record?"

The man nodded. "That's all, then the kid's the council's ward. He'll be housed in our newborn's holding wing until the council finds a foster home."

"Foster home?" Tai asked confused. "Don't you just house them here?"

Byrn shook his head somberly. "Not at all. We're not funded well enough to provide care for a baby for that long, we're more or less strictly for young kids between the ages of three to sixteen. So what does the council do? Pay some family that's willing to take em per kid per month. Not much, but only just enough to cover for the care."

"You don't seem so keen on that. . ." It worried Tai that this seasoned professional doesn't seem excited at the idea of Orochimaru finding a temporary home, at least for until the end of infancy.

The man grunted again, now with some added sourness. "In my younger days, I've seen a few of those houses. They seem fine at first, but later, when eyes aren't on them anymore, a lot of things happen." Tai's stomach burned. "I took it upon myself for a surprise visit on a few, and while some were fine, the others were in it for the paycheck, and the kids were an inconvenience they had to put up with."

That feeling in his stomach became worse. "What are the chances the foster home Orochimaru will find would be a good one?"

"Don't ask me for numbers, it's hard to say if we even find all the bad ones. Some are good at covering their tracks for those extra few hundred lien a month." Byrn leaned in. "I'll be straight with you, Mr. Xiao-Long, the kid there might find a good home, I've made sure a few homes weren't hidden shit holes for the money and even got a few in prison for it, but it's not up to me anymore to pick out the family that takes him in. Chances, though? Hell if I know."

There were a lot of indirect answers, but maybe it was just that bad. Tai couldn't help but look at Orochimaru again, seeing the boy's yellow eyes stare into his own.

In front of him, he saw Byrn bring out a piece of paper, scribble something onto it, then let it sit on his desk and made to hand Tai a pen. "It's a shitty choice for a good parent, I know that." For the first time, Byrn actually seemed sympathetic. "Sign this here, and the baby will find another home with people to take care of him. It might be a good home, it might not, but it'll be something, at least until he's three, then I take him away and give him what he needs and deserves to grow up properly."

Oddly enough, it actually seemed like a good idea for Byrnard to have the boy. Again, Tai looked at Orochimaru, his gaze neutral as a baby would have. He didn't so much as make a sound during the entire conversation, made it seem like he was listening.

With a heavy sigh, Tai took the paper and read through it. Byrnard wrote how the situation was, how Tai found Orochimaru in a basket at his doorstep late at night, then came the next morning to hand him in. All he had to do was sign the paper to confirm it, then leave the building; simple, sickeningly so.

Tai looked at the pen, and then to Byrn, and sighed. "I have to do this."

* * *

Qrow watched as his two nieces ate their poorly-made breakfast slowly, he knew why, of course. When they woke up and saw their dad and the basket gone, they immediately knew what was going on.

Ruby was first to tear up, and just when he thought he'd have to come to comfort her, Yang came in for the rescue. And hugged her, saying how it was for the best, even for the baby.

Damn, Tai fucked up big time if it was his six-year-old that had to take care of his four-year-old. Just like him, he knew that it was for the best, and soon Ruby and Yang would know that, too.

"You guys not hungry?" Qrow asked as he took a seat with his nieces. "C'mon, I didn't burn the toast _that_ badly. And look, most of the egg yolks are still there. No shells this time, I learned the proper way to break open eggs now."

Ruby mumbled something that could've been thanks, but she didn't stop playing with her food. Yang wasn't all that better, but she wasn't crying or anything like that, just saddened by what happened.

"Look, you two," he began, not really getting their attention. "Your dad has you two to think about, a third kid, after what happened, he can't handle that." He put his hand on their shoulders. "It sucks, I get it, but your dad finally snapped out of it. You two deserve his attention, especially after everything." Both of them sniffled, and his heart cracked a bit. "Just give him a chance to prove himself, okay?"

"Uncle Qrow," Yang finally spoke. "Both of us know why he did what he did, it's just that. . . maybe the baby would've helped with everything."

He didn't understand what she meant, and maybe she didn't either, but at least they were understanding of the situation. Ruby didn't look up from her food, but again, at least she didn't shout in denial.

"He's going to get it right this time," he said. "If he turned back to what he was, you two just have to wait for me to knock some sense into him, and I mean that literally." He wasn't joking, either. If Tai regressed after his promise, it was a spit to Summer's and their faces, and he won't leave unbruised. That blonde bastard got his second chance, and for his sake, he shouldn't waste it.

"Thanks, Uncle Qrow," Yang said, with a small smile of her own.

The door opened, and none moved from the table, they knew who it was, and only him, no other person. Again, Ruby went back to playing with her food, and Yang just sighed and put her hand on Ruby's shoulder for support.

"I'm home," Tai shouted, not all the energetic. Both of them knew that it wouldn't be an easy choice, so it was understandable that neither of them were happy about it.

"We're in the kitchen," Qrow shouted back. He turned back to Yang. "I'm serious, Yang. If your dad goes back, I will personally show him what happens when he breaks a promise to you guys."

He actually managed to have her chuckle a bit. "Don't worry, Uncle Qrow, I won't forget that."

The steps sounded they were coming closer, so Qrow turned to see the blonde bastard just come into view. "If you want breakfast, make your own, it's a miracle I made mine even edib-"

"Dad!" both Yang and Ruby shouted at what they saw.

"Tai. . ." He wasn't alone, the basket still in his hand.

The blonde bastard pursed his lips and put the basket on the kitchen counter, and with the other hand, put down three large bags, and Qrow had a good idea on what's inside them.

"Hey, all, I think we gotta talk about something," he said, and Qrow narrowed his eyes. "I think maybe Yang's right, maybe-" He sighed. "- maybe the kid is what we need."

Ruby practically jumped off the chair and ran to hug her dad's leg. "Thank you. Thank you. Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou." It was an adorable scene, one that Qrow would've liked better if he didn't have the questions he had.

"Dad, are you sure about this?" Yang asked, again showing her maturity instead of jumping in joy, though it certainly looked like she wanted to.

A deep breath, exhale, something people did when they made a choice. "I'm sure, Yang. I won't mess this up. I _can't_ mess this up."

"Tai," Qrow said, more of a warning than anything. "What do you think you're doing?"

The man's shoulder sagged and looked to his daughters. "Yang, Ruby, why don't you go upstairs and get dressed, we're going out for a bit, the four of us, and Qrow if he wants to join us."

Ruby's eyes widened "You mean. . ."

Tai nodded. "Orochimaru is a Xiao-Long now. . . At least until after some checking and the paperwork arrives, anyway."

Both his daughters cheered. "I'm going to have a little brother!" Ruby shouted happily, again, an endearing scene if it wasn't for the things going on in Qrow's mind.

Thankfully, Yang dragged Ruby away from the kitchen and to their room, leaving them to talk about what happened, and what's going to happen. If this was Tai going through a midlife crisis, this was the worst thing he could do.

"Now I know what you're going to say, but hear me out," Tai began, a good choice of first words, ones that didn't have him need to punch some sense through his teeth.

"I'm listening, Tai, because believe me, the other thing I want to do isn't going to be pretty for you."

He pulled up a seat beside Qrow. "I went to the orphanage like planned, but they don't take in newborns, they send those to foster care." Qrow didn't see the problem, and it was clear on his confused face because kept going after the little pause. "The foster care houses sometimes aren't great, especially for babies, at least until they reach a certain age where an orphanage takes them in."

"What's the supposed to mean?"

"It means that what I did after Summer died may not have been the worst thing I could've done." Oh. . .

"So that's why you're taking in a third kid, Tai?" he asked, now more understanding. "Maybe the foster care would've been a good one, we both know you just snapped out of being a dumbass."

"I know." He leaned back with a heavy sigh. "Then I tried to convince myself that it couldn't have been that bad, that he'd find a good home. Then I kept thinking about what could, what should, and what I wanted- No, what I _needed_."

"What you needed? You do know this is another person we're talking about, not some dog."

"I'm the last person you should be telling that to," he answered a little heatedly, then calmed himself. "Sorry, it's just been a surprisingly tiring day." He looked back to Qrow, a little more determined than before. "I can't let this kid go through worse than what Yang and Ruby did, I just can't."

Qrow kept his stare for a few more seconds, waiting for that glimmer that would've gotten him a punch in the face, then relented. "I hope you know what you're doing, Tai."

Xiao-Long nodded with a sigh. "I hope so too, Qrow, really I do."

* * *

 _ **Would you kindly**_ **leave a review? *hypnotism intensifies***


	3. Excellence Exasperated

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 **Chapter 3**

 **And here we are again, now with a time skip. Just imagine a quiet baby doing what quiet babies do, and what a single parent with two (now three) kids would do. Really, there's little imagination needed nor the need to tell it. Diapers changed, bottles being made, siblings playing with his elastic mouth by seeing what fits and what doesn't. You know, normal baby things.**

* * *

 **Chapter Three: Excellence Exasperated**

Curious, such a little butterfly standing on a leaf three times larger than its own wingspan. Likely nourishing itself on the morning dew, yesterday's light rain made plenty of it.

Orochimaru picked up the butterfly by the wing, having the insect flutter for release. He held the other wing and delicately inspected it, its many legs searching for a foothold to get away.

Putting it into the air to see the underside, it had unusual markings. A yellow-dotted black body, but with black-dotted red wings, something he doesn't usually see often around his home.

"A genetic mutation?" he whispered to himself. It can certainly happen depending on outside factors, but nothing his read about so far. "I wonder. . ."

He pulled off one of the wings from the butterfly, the small creature now frantically moving, likely out of pain and stress. He pulled up the wing to see into the root. It was paper-thin and hard to see, but it had a black core with no red coloration. Interesting, really.

"What are you doing?" a familiar voice asked from behind him.

Orochimaru turned. "Trying to learn about nature, dad," he answered. Taiyang Xiao-Long, his adoptive father.

The older man looked to the wing in his hand and the scurrying insect on the other. "You don't have to tear out a wing to learn about them, I think I told you that."

"The books you bought me didn't give me any practical information, and besides, this is a special case." He showed him the body and the wing. "The colors don't match from body to wing, I think there's mutation in this breed's genome, I'm curious to see what the karyotype of it is like compared to similar genus."

His father sighed. "You know you're five, right? You're supposed to play in the mud, watch TV until I tell you to stop, or whack your sisters on the head with a stick."

"I don't really see a point in hitting Yang or Ruby in the cranium would help either of us."

"It's just an example." A poor one. "Don't you think you're reading those science journals a little too much?" The look on his face said his answer. He sighed. "Alright, we'll talk about it later. For now, go get cleaned up, your first day of school is in an hour." Orochimaru nodded and left to the house. "And drop the bug, I'm going to have to put it out of its misery."

Aww.

* * *

Tai watched as his son let go of the butterfly to the ground as he walked into the house. He couldn't help but remember the five years since he found him on their doorstep, and all the experience that followed.

He wasn't going to lie, it was surprisingly enjoyable raising a baby again, at least easier than how he did with Ruby and Yang. Orochimaru never cried, he never made a fuss, wasn't really picky with his food, he was, for all intents and purposes, the perfect baby.

Granted, crying was usually a good way to learn if the baby was hungry or dirty, but with a little effort, and even with the help of his two girls, they had a workaround and schedule.

Tai walked over to the butterfly Orochimaru was examining, watching as the poor thing was split into two pieces, the body with one wing, and the missing other to the side. He quickly stomped on it to end its suffering. His son's moral compass not exactly developed yet, but he'd teach him, this wouldn't continue.

Orochimaru was an interesting boy, he was quiet for most of the time, he answers in short and curt sentences, it almost made it seem like he didn't like them. But after some time, it's just that he was quiet, keeping to himself and his thoughts.

"Yang certainly had fun making sure to drag his voice at times though," he said with some amusement. His daughter didn't like his short answers, and more often than not noogied more out. While he shouldn't condone such treatment, it did help him break out of his shell a bit more. So a blind eye once or twice helped.

He lifted his boot and saw the dead bug, which brought into his latest habits. The boy was a curious one, incredibly so that he would even go out and took apart a bug to learn more. Tai was thankful his son brought it up to him because that wasn't exactly normal and he answered to it quickly.

"To think he read through elementary textbooks so fast I had to get him science journals," he said with a sigh. Now he needed to look up what the hell a karyotype was, because Orochimaru's vocabulary greatly expanded the past year, far more than any even three-times his age, which should make the future a little interesting.

He wasn't sure how the First-Grade class would do, but it should be a good learning experience on how to be around people that aren't related to him. Yang and Ruby did what they could, drag him out to play, talking, food fights, dressing up Orochimaru as a girl with all the makeup bells and whistles.

The last one was particularly effective, but that might be from how hard Tai laughed at his son's neutral expression in a yellow dress and sunhat. He didn't really care about being in girl's clothes, just patient as his sisters gleefully dressed him up, which made it endearing as it was funny.

With a small laugh at the memory, he went into the house to see his two kids in the kitchen having breakfast, the third one likely upstairs and fixing himself up.

"He learning about nature again?" Yang asked before diving into her cereal, the fastest a single dad can make for breakfast. "Any fancy words, this time?"

"Don't suppose you know what a genus is, do you?"

Ruby groaned. "Dad, those are the things that give you three wishes, you should know this."

Somehow, he doubted that was the case. "I guess I'll just have to ask Oro about it," he said with a shrug, not really intending on it. "You two ready for school?" Both of them shouted the affirmative.

"I am as well, dad," Orochimaru said as he finally made his way down the stairs. He wore a simple, grey shirt, black pants, and plain black shoes, the only standout feature was his black hair tied into a small ponytail.

Any other kid his age would've worn the flashiest of clothes, images, and logos of their favorite TV shows or heroes printed on them. Not Orochimaru, though, he didn't like watching TV or get caught up on fiction, instead, he liked to read educational materials to the point the only thing that stood out in his room was the small library inside.

"I'm curious to see what answers I might find at my school," he said with a smile. "Would they teach me on genetics and microbiology, by any chance?" Uh. . .

Yang whistled. "Wow, Oro's really excited, ain't he?" She looked at her dad. "You wanna tell him, or should I?"

Damn it, Yang, she took that part from Qrow's side of the family for sure. Damn Branwens, throwing him under the bus even now.

"Is something the matter?" Orochimaru asked innocently, the five-year-old who expected to be taught topics usually reserved for high school or university.

Tai cleared his throat and looked to his son. "Well, Oro, you see." God damn it. "The school you're going to isn't going to teach you that stuff."

He looked disappointed. "What then? Quantum mechanics? Astrophysics? Kinetic chemistry? I'm fine with those as well." Yeesh, Tai didn't even know that last one was even a thing. What the hell was in those journals?

Yang took the proverbial mic from him. "Probably math, writing, reading, and maybe even some history." It would've been better if she didn't look like she's on the border of laughing. "Gonna have to dumb yourself down a bit."

Oro didn't tear his eyes away from his dad, expecting a proper explanation. "Dad, where exactly am I going?"

For the millionth time, Tai sighed. "It's a school for kids your age." That didn't answer his question, he didn't really know others. "Not every kid-" Or any. "-on Patch is as smart as you, so they have to learn the basics. Addition, subtraction, that kind of thing."

"But I know all that already, what's the point of going?" Huh, honestly this was pretty similar to when Yang first started school, minus the yelling of how she already knew enough. Good times.

"It'll teach you more about being with kids your own age." That didn't help, but it was the truth. "It'll even be a great experience and an opportunity for you to find friends."

Oro innocently tilted his head. "Friends? I don't really need those." Yikes. . .

"He's got us, dad," Ruby said, the little enabler. "He don't need no random people." Wow, that was bad advice. Yang looked less enthused at the idea, so it was reassuring there.

"Ruby's grammatical errors aside," Oro began. "I still have much to learn in the field of science, I'd rather not waste time learning what I already know."

Tai shook his head. "The world is more than simply science, Oro, and it's time you learn that." He opened his mouth to reply, he raised his hand to put a stop to that. "This isn't a negotiation, you're going to school and hang around kids your own age."

A small staring contest ensued. Was his son really expected him to relent? Not in the least, especially not to a five-year-old, Qrow would never let him hear the end of it.

"Fine," Oro finally said. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to at least try, a field exercise, so to speak." For a kid, he's pretty prideful to even admit defeat. Maybe Qrow was rubbing off on him, and that wasn't necessarily a good thing.

"Good." Tai looked to his two daughters. "Alright, girls, you got your things?" They both nodded. "It's time to go to school, and watch out for your brother. . . Yang."

She raised her arms in surrender. "I promise not to punch the teeth of whoever bothers my sis or bro. . . again." Wasn't that a fun day to meet the parents. "I'll make sure the bruises don't show this time." He snapped to her. "I'm joking!"

That was probably the best he could get out of her. "Alright, you three, let's go."

* * *

"We're very excited to have your son with us," the teacher said warmly, a young woman in her mid-twenties by the looks of it. "I'm going to be the teacher for him and the other first-time school-goers, you can call me Ms. Ruben."

"I'm Taiyang Xiao-Long," he greeted and gestured to his son. "This is Orochimaru, I hope you take good care of him." He didn't really remember this woman when Ruby first started, she might be a bit newer than the rest.

"I fully intend to." The teacher nodded with a wide smile and bent down to look Oro in the eyes. "Are you excited for your first day of school, young man?"

Oro shrugged. "Not really." Oh boy.

Instead of being insulted, the young woman laughed a little. "Don't worry, most of your classmates will be nervous as well, and I intend to make it as enjoyable and rewarding as possible."

Tai cleared his throat. "U-Um, Orochimaru is a bit more unique than most other kids his age."

Surprisingly, Ms. Ruben nodded. "Don't worry, Mr. Xiao-Long, I haven't gotten my Masters in teaching for nothing. I'm fully accredited and trained to teach all manners of children. I understand some children need to be approached a little differently than others," she said proudly. "Your son is in capable hands, I promise you."

Well, if she puts it that way. "Alright, Ms. Ruben, I'll trust you to take care of my son." He looked to Oro. "You ready for your first day?"

Again, he shrugged. "As ready as I'll ever be."

Nodding, Tai added, "Yang and Ruby are going to be around in recess, so if you feel lonely, don't hesitate to find either of them. But promise me you'll at least try to make friends on your own?"

Oro kept quiet for a second, thinking of his options or excuses, most likely, but nodded in the end. Honestly, he wasn't sure if his son would find friends so quickly, it's not like how it was in Beacon, but if Ruby and Yang made friends, then so could he.

Tai gently pushed Oro to the teacher. "Well, there you have it, Ms. Ruben, one more student under your care." He didn't resist, just walked forward closer to the young woman.

As for Ms. Ruben, she looked more than happy to take him. "Thank you, Mr. Xiao-Long, I assure you Orochimaru will learn much out of my class." It probably wouldn't be as much as she expected, but her confidence and optimism was too much for him to deny, so he just nodded.

"I'll pick you and your sisters up at the end of school, okay, Oro?" he said once looked at his son.

"Alright, dad, see you then." An emotion came over Tai that had him bend down and hug his son, who was a little slow, but did hug back. "Dad, are you okay?"

"Just hugging my growing boy." He couldn't help it, he did the same to Ruby and Yang on their first day. It felt like yesterday that he was abandoned on their doorstep, and now look. Tai stood back up and made sure he didn't tear up. "You're going to try, right, Oro?" He nodded. "Alright then, I'll see you after school." He waved to his son, who waved back, then turned to leave.

He knew Orochimaru would be fine, it's not like it was anything new he experienced, but he couldn't help it, it was his little boy growing up. This was a step closer to leaving the nest, the one day, he'll leave the home, forget about him, and never see him again.

Damn it, he's getting choked up again.

He left the school and looked for a bar. He took the day off from work for this special occasion, and now he was going to make a small event out of it.

It didn't take long to find a bar, though considering its classical style, a tavern is more appropriately named, though minus the housing. Tai walked through the doors, finding the place mostly empty, as it should because it's still early in the morning, in fact, the barkeep holding cases of booze looked surprised to even see him.

"You open?" Tai asked.

"Technically I am," the man said as continued his way with what he was holding. "I'll be with you in a moment, sir, just take a seat at the counter, or a table if you want breakfast." When Tai nodded, he left to do whatever he needed with those crates.

Breakfast wasn't on his mind, he'd eaten at home and feels full, so having a small drink shouldn't be too bad. It's not like he was going into Qrow-levels of drinking, not that it was much of an achievement on that front.

"Good morning, sir," the bartender came from a side room, and leaned on the counter to hear from him. "What can I get for you?"

"Just a beer is fine, it'll actually be all I'll have, so you won't have to bother with me for long."

The man nodded, crouched down a fridge likely under the counter, and placed a bottle right in front of him before opening it. "So, what's the occasion that has you drinking so early?"

Tai took a swig. "My son's first day of school, just dropped him off, actually. Now I'm celebrating his first step growing up."

The barkeep nodded. "Well, I can't say I feel the same since I don't have a son, but I can imagine it's a pretty big day."

A friendly and talkative one, the kind meant to keep you around longer and enjoy the place. Not a bad personality to have, especially now since the only other person Tai can talk to causes his stool to break just being close enough.

"I have two older daughters, too, I can tell you the feeling is the same no matter how many times you experience it." It really was, especially after Summer died, he didn't want to let go of them. Even now that he had a son several years later, it still felt the same. "Don't suppose dads come around here to do the same, do they?"

He shook his head. "Don't think so, at least not this early in the morning." Well, guess this a first, then. "I'll be in the back unpacking a few crates. If you need me, just call for me, name's Jerry."

"Thanks, Jerry, likely I'll finish the beer and leave." He dug up his wallet and placed some money on the counter. "Keep the change."

Jerry nodded his thanks, took the money, and left to a side room. More than that, it left Tai to his thoughts, of what the future could hold. It was both easy and not at the same time. Complicated sounds right, but it was probably just him being a dad.

Yang and Ruby, they know what they wanted to be. Ruby because all the stories he told her and shows she watched pushed her to be a hero, a Huntress. Yang as well because. . . He didn't really know the reason, she certainly seemed like the person who would, though.

Orochimaru, however, was a different story. His son wasn't really the athletic outgoing type, but he was still just five, so many things can change; _will_ change, really. Maybe he would want to be a Huntsman, but his recent interests didn't look like it'd be the case.

Kids his age would've cried before he'd have been dragged to school, but not him, he just calmly accepted it, embraced it, even. Maybe he wouldn't be a Huntsman, but it was too early to tell.

He wasn't like Ruby, he wouldn't revel in fairytales and smile at the ending, the boy loved science, almost every kind of it, while his older sister found it boring and probably would put her to sleep faster than any knight story.

And by far he wasn't like Yang. Where he was quiet and socially awkward, his eldest sister was chatty and spontaneous, a complete opposite of hi-

Tai's Scroll buzzed, and he couldn't help but be annoyed at the device for ruining his serene mood. If it was Signal, they were in for a real telling off.

He took it out of his pocket and saw the familiar number. It was the school he dropped his children in, and this would've been a first he'd ever been called just after thirty minutes of leaving his kids in their care.

A blonde little girl came to mind, with her fist striking some kid's face for making fun of her siblings. God damn it, Yang, she could've at least tried talking it out.

With a sigh, Tai reluctantly answered the call. Thirty minutes had to be a world record somewhere, not exactly something to be proud of Yang for, but it was definitely something he'd bring up in the future during her teenage years.

He put the scroll to his ears. "Hello?" It was the principle, someone he was familiar with considering the occasions he'd visited with Yang sitting outside.

"Mr. Xiao-Long, this is the Principle Armstrong," she introduced herself, though it wasn't needed. "A situation happened at the school today." The same formal way of breaking the ice he'd heard again and again. He expected a 'Yo, Yang's in trouble again, boi, come pick her up' at some point.

He sighed again. "I'm close to the school, I'll be there shortly and pick Yang up."

"This isn't about your eldest daughter, Mr. Xiao-Long."

That was definitely surprising. "I'm sorry, what?"

"It's your son, Orochimaru, he stabbed one of his classmates."

Tai's beer wasn't even half-done before he ran out of the bar.

* * *

 **Just to reiterate, this isn't AU. You'll know what I mean the further you read. The why, why again, and how being answered through the story. In the meantime. . . review?**


	4. Revelation Reviled

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 **Chapter 4**

 **Chapter is smaller than usual, but any bigger then it'd be just pointless filler. I don't expect future chapters to be nearly as short, but you never know.**

* * *

 **Chapter Four: Revelation Reviled**

Orochimaru sat quietly on his chair at the kitchen table, across from him was his father looking at him with disappointment.

 _'He should be,'_ Oro thought as he sunk into his seat. What happened shouldn't have happened, but it did.

His dad leaned over hands clamped together, looking all too angry. "Was anything Principle Armstrong said not true?" He didn't get an answer. "Was any of it a lie?" This time Orochimaru shook his head. "You stabbed a boy's hand with a pen, just because he took your book?"

"It wasn't just any book. . ." Oro mumbled but immediately regretted it when Tai slammed his hand on the table with a loud slap that had him jump in his seat. "I'm sorry, I spoke out of turn."

"Yes, you did." He drew his hand back. "You stabbed through a boy's hand with a pen because he took away your book, Oro, what were you thinking?"

Orochimaru liked to think he had some answers to most types of questions. Genetics, calculus, thermodynamics, and the like, he was confident he could take those questions with ease, but what his dad just asked, it was difficult.

"I don't know."

"You don't know?" Oro shook his head. "You don't know why you sent a boy to the hospital?" Again, he shook his head. "Think, Orochimaru, just give me a reason, any at all," Tai pleaded.

 _'The boy deserved it,'_ he thought, surprising him and had him shake his head at that malicious thought.

Tai leaned back with a sigh, taking his shake of the head as the answer. "You got expelled because of that." Orochimaru sunk deeper into his bench. "I had to pay for the poor boy's hospital fees, but that's not what really matters." No, his dad wasn't one who cared about money, it was about doing the right thing. And what he did had made him very disappointed, and that hurt him, far more than he thought it would.

"I'm sorry, dad." He was, really. "I don't know what came over me." His eyes stung from tears that threatened to emerge, but he held it back. "I just. . . blacked out, almost. I know what happened, but I got so angry that my body just moved on its own." There wasn't a physiological cause, it was a psychological one, and it surprised even Orochimaru for it.

Tai stayed quiet, and that made it all the worse. He was only reading his journal, and the boy that sat beside him actively tried talking and making friends with Oro. _'I tried talking, but he was just so. . .'_ Infantile? Uneducated?

No, stupid was the right word.

Before long, the child started to annoy him just for trying to keep him company. Trying to talk to him and make friends, and soon it was just too much, Oro began ignoring him, leaving him with his voice while he brought out a journal to read until class started. The boy really did nothing wrong. . . until he did.

What happened was a vague memory, but Orochimaru knew it was only an hour ago. It was a simple thing, the boy simply got fed up of Oro ignoring him, tearing away his book with an angry glare and demand for attention. And that was his mistake, both of theirs.

Like a blind rage, Oro grabbed the boy's wrist, slammed it to the table, and used a pen to stab through the boy's palm for what he did, and even pierced to the wood of the desk. It was only after a cry of pain did Oro realize what he'd done, but the boy wasn't the only one who screamed, the rest of the class joined, teacher included.

"What am I going to do with you?" Tai mumbled more so to himself. "You were always a soft-spoken and calm boy, what happened?"

He didn't know, he never really experienced such anger before, so sudden and burning. His reaction? Well, it was an overreaction, even he knew that the second he felt the boy's wet blood on his hand.

"I'm sorry, dad."

"It's not just me who you should be apologizing to." That boy, Oro realized. Tai sighed. "Though after what I heard from the parents through their shouting, I don't think they want us anywhere near their son."

"So what's to be done?" Orochimaru asked. "Should I just stay at home, then?"

"Oh, you'll be at home for a _long_ time." He supposed a punishment was in order, and Oro couldn't find it in him to protest. "No leaving the house without my say-so, and I'm going to be locking away the journals I got you for a month."

"But-!" His dad's glare was more than enough to have him hold his tongue. "I-I understand." Tai lessened his frown, there would be no arguments from him anytime soon. "What about during? Do I go back to school?"

His frown returned. "No, not to that school. After what happened, Principle Armstrong put you on her banned list." Oro winced. "Patch has a few other schools for your age, and it might be early enough to enroll you, still." The blonde man leaned back into his chair. "But maybe I did things wrong."

That confused his son. "You didn't make a mistake, dad, I did."

"What I mean is maybe you're not cut out for primary school." Tai hummed to himself in thought, then stood up and looked at his son. "Go to your room, I'm going to make a few calls."

With only a nod, Oro left his seat and made his way to the stairs. The house never felt so empty, Yang and Ruby being still at school only added to that. They likely would have tried to comfort him or even take his side somehow, but not now. This time, he was alone.

 _'I'm better off alone, anyway,'_ he thought, again, earning a shake of the head. _'It was just the mood that called for thoughts.'_ He sighed at the depreciation and went up the stairs and entered his room, staring at the bookcase his father built for him, filled to the brim with scientific journals and books, most of which he read or was reading.

Now they were on hold for a while. His dad most likely soon coming up here with several boxes to keep him away from them for a long time, and he couldn't find it in him to argue or even hide a few away before he came up. He knew what he did.

The boy should've known sooner.

Oro flinched at the thought. Regardless of what the boy did, his reaction was far too much and didn't warrant it, it didn't take much thought for him to realize that. Even so, it was time to pay the price for what he did.

Every action has an equal opposite reaction, since Oro messed up royally, he had to pay in equal kind. _'Why did I do what I did?'_ As his father said, it was unlike him, he knew that, as well.

Orochimaru replayed what happened in his mind again, the slowly climbing in irritation, then the sudden burst of blinding anger, immediately into confusion and regret. He didn't even know the boy's name, though he said it several times, Oro just stopped caring about it enough to recall.

He remembered he was reading about sorting through genes in a karyotype, then the boy was bothered enough to grab the book from the top and lower it, citing how he was trying to be friends and how Oro could just give him a chance.

At least, that's what Orochimaru thought he heard. Most of it was clouded, but anger took over him, ignoring the boy's yelp when he snapped to the boy's wrist, grabbed it, and with vindictive pleasure, used the boy's own pen to pierce his hand.

Even now, Oro felt like smiling for showing him his place, for replying to the boy's error, but he held himself back from that. This was a bizarre circumstance he had never experienced the like of, so his reactions were unprecedented. Mentally and physically, nothing in his upbringing said he'd do what he did.

 _'I'll need to look into some psychology books once my punishment is over, nothing I did would be considered normal in any world.'_ He wasn't a sociopath. . . at least, he hoped he wasn't.

He sat on his desk and stared at the stationaries neatly placed on it. _'Is momentary insanity common?'_ He eyed the cup of pens and pencils, noting that he never in any memory thought of them as a weapon; a knife and a scalpel, sure, their purpose demanded it, but never pens. _'I know I'm stable, I have to be to understand what I do, right?'_ He was only sparsely knowledgeable on the subject.

Oro tried finding a proper reason for what happened, a better cause than simply him throwing an excessive tantrum. Insanity was an answer, but not one he was prepared to hold. Inexperience when dealing with other people? Sounded viable, but then the likely reaction would've been casual acceptance, a 'yes man', so to speak. But there was none of that.

 _'Maybe the boy was unstable if he couldn't even understand his unwanted existence.'_

Orochimaru cringed. Maybe he wasn't as sane as he hoped if he actually believed that. _'But I do.'_ I shouldn't, this isn't a normal reaction. If it was, then I shouldn't have felt guilt and regret.

 _'Is it guilt and regret for what you've done, or that you didn't get away with it?'_ He certainly felt those, especially when he knew he disappointed his father. _'Again, for not getting away with it.'_

No, that can't be the case. Oro refused to believe that he'd harm others for doing less than what Yang usually does to him, and he never harmed his elder sister, not once.

 _'That's because she's stronger than you. In time, when you grow stronger, you'd show where her place stands.'_

NO!

 **YES!**

Wait. . .

"These don't feel like my thoughts." He stood from his seat, looking around the room, seeing nothing. "Is. . . someone here?" He felt stupid for asking such a thing out loud, but then he heard a kind of cruel laugh, but nowhere he could pinpoint.

Then he heard it, like an echo reverberating from all directions. _'_ _ **I've been here since the beginning, only now have you developed enough to even sense me.**_ _'_

Suddenly, he felt every breath he took, a normal response to a stressful situation, but that didn't make anything normal. "Where are you?" A home invader? Why can't he see him, then?

 _' **I'm in your mind, boy.**_ _'_ His breath became even faster. _'_ _ **Try not to die from a heart attack, I've been here seeing the world through your eyes, even helping now and then.**_ _'_

This can't be real!

The voice laughed again. _'_ _ **Boy, you are in for a rude awakening.**_ _'_ Somehow, he felt the voice come closer, almost like whispering to Oro's ear, and then the voice said in a voice far older than his own _, '_ _ **I'm the real Orochimaru.**_ _'_

* * *

 **Things got a little complicated, didn't it? I guess that makes things a bit more fun.**

 **Reviews are greatly appreciated.**


	5. Impossible Implications

.

 **Chapter 5**

 **What I wanted to say here would've been considered spoilers or even hints, so I won't, as tempting as it is to respond to some reviews.**

* * *

 **Chapter Five: Impossible Implications**

This wasn't happening. It's preposterous. It's baseless. It's contrived. It's. . . It's Insanity!

 _' **Foolish boy, I was here since the beginning, you just haven't noticed. You are as stable as anyone outside of this pile of wood you call home.'**_

"No!" Orochimaru jumped to his feet. "S-Stress can often cause temporary delusions. After today's events, it's only natural that my mind is tired, and the added stress only causing the higher chance for hallucination and delusion."

 _' **I suppose you would consider being mentally deranged to be a better alternative, do you?'**_

"I mean. . . I-It just-"

 _' **You can make all the excuses you wish, but I am still here.'**_ The voice chuckled, it felt like an echo within his skull, tone eerie and sinister in nature. _**'Yes, it does sound like it, doesn't it? But it changes nothing, best you accept the reality of the situation.'**_

"You can read my thoughts!?"

 _' **I AM your thoughts, I am you. Your mind, your soul, your complete being, I am all those things!'**_ No, it can't be the case, it's impossible. _**'Is it? Yet here you are, talking to a disembodied voice only you can hear.'**_

"M-Maybe other people can hear? If so, then maybe I'm not. . . not-"

' _ **Crazy?'**_ the voiced finished for him. _**'Go ahead, test it. Go to your father and ask him if there's a voice whispering into his ear, I'll make sure to scream and prove it.'**_ That didn't sound good either. _**'It doesn't, but heed my words, boy, you are absolutely mentally stable.'**_

"If I'm stable, then why do I hear a voice in my head? Worse still, why does this voice claim to be me!?"

The voice hummed. _**'I concede to your first point, I suppose hearing voices is not a sign of stability.'**_ Even though the voice agreed, it didn't make him feel any better. _**'Be that as it may, I've been here since the beginning, I remember everything as vividly as you do. All the books, scientific research, journals, and even memories, I know them as my own.'**_

"I refuse to accept this," he said as he stomped over to the bookshelf, looking over the titles for any source of help. Most of the topics pertained to physics, genetics, and chemistry, he should know, he read most of it. "There has to be something here that can help."

The voice laughed cruelly. _**'I can confirm that there's nothing in there that even remotely covers the topic you oh so desperately want. What's more, you know that as well.'**_

There had to be something! He could go buy new ones that did, but he wasn't in any position to ask his father for anything at the moment. Wait, that's right! Dad surely could help!

 _' **Go ahead, see what good that'll do.'**_

"I would be more worried if I were you. Soon, you'll be gone, one way or another." Orochimaru already began marching to the door and ask for help.

The laugh had him hesitate. _**'Really, is that why you want to go speak to your father? Interesting, because here I was thinking you'd give him an excuse as to why you stabbed the boy as if it wasn't your fault.'**_

It wasn't, couldn't be, and now after hearing what he did, he knew it was this cognitive delusion. It wasn't him, it was this. . . _thing_.

 _' **I said this before, I am you, you are me. You stabbed the boy, all I did was offer the idea and gave you a nudge. The one who did it, however, was all you, no amount of reasoning will change that.'**_

N-no, that can't be the case. He'd admit that boy annoyed him to no end, even humored the idea of using force to get him away, but he never would do what he did.

 _' **But you did, and now you're trying to shift the blame.'**_ The voice sighed. _**'I know what's in your heart, you want to your father to blame me, but I was nothing more than a whisper in your ear.'**_ Orochimaru could _feel_ the smile. _**'Take some pleasure in it, you stopped that irritating child from bothering you any further by yourself.'**_

"No! I'm not at fault! I'm not some Neanderthal, I can control my own emotions and desires."

 _' **Ah, so you admit that you desire to rid that child from you?'**_ Orochimaru's voice hitched. _**'You don't need to lie to me, you can't even if you tried.'**_

Something in him flared. "WHAT EVEN ARE YOU!?"

 _' **Ah, there it is, a raw form of what makes you yourself. . . Well, what makes us ourselves, more like.'**_ That laugh echoed in his mind. _**'I am Orochimaru, I am you as much as you are me.'**_

"That is not an answer." He walked away from the door and towards a mirror he had in his room. A birthday gift from Yang, he remembered, one he didn't dislike, but now, he looked to his reflection with frustration, a frown on his face, and only then he noticed he was breathing heavily. "You are _not_ me, you are. . . a monster."

 _' **I am a monster, you say?'**_ For a moment, it was quiet, but it was the one time he didn't want it to be. Then, as though it's a habit, the voice laughed. Slowly at first, but it grew louder and deafening, and it echoed and gave him a headache in a way he'd never experienced. _**'Perhaps I am, I can't say for sure, but what I'm certain of, is that you are as much of a monster as I.'**_

"Let me inform you then," he said to his reflection, even pointed a finger at mirror. It wasn't lost on him how ridiculous it looked, but he was too stressed to even care. "No normal being would encourage harming someone, no normal being would revel in harming others." His father had taught him that, harming others without reason was something never to be proud of, something only degenerates would do.

 _' **Well then, I suppose we're abnormal human beings and degenerates.'**_

Obviously, this brought some confusion. "You do not get to decide-"

 _' **I'm deciding nothing. In fact, I decided very little the entire time. I'm merely pointing out that you indeed reveled in harming the child. I felt it just as much as you have, get it through your thick skull.'**_

"That's a lie!"

 _' **The only lie present is the one you tell yourself. I felt the same goosebumps you did when you finally showed that brat his place, I felt the pleasure of finally having the boy back away from you. Or do you not remember? No, I know you do.'**_

It was all a lie, he wanted to say, but there was a kernel of truth in what the voice said. Especially when it was the elation knowing the boy would leave him be, followed by no small amount of confusion, dread, and trepidation.

 _' **At least you admit to that, perhaps you will now understand there's little wrong in what you did.'**_

"Just because I felt elation, doesn't mean it must be done. What you did, what you had me do, I didn't want to do it, and will not allow some disembodied voice, likely born from delusion, to dictate my actions. I am in a predicament that I need to solve, and I refuse to have you exist. Leave. Me. Alone."

Maybe it was because of the past few minutes, maybe it was the stress finally rising to a boiling point, Orochimaru felt tired of it all. His breathing was heavy and slow, he noticed his eyes weren't really focused, his posture less defined, even bending a little bit. The day might've started out well, but throughout it had been progressing from bad to worse, this had to end.

Orochimaru kept staring at the mirror, panting and out of breath. He half expected his own reflection to laugh and mock him, but of course, it didn't.

 _' ** _Are_ you done?'**_ it replied, in a way dad sometimes did when Orochimaru explained the curious differences between species. _**'Perhaps you're right, you do need to solve this so-called issue that is bothering you so.'**_ For the first time, in what felt like forever though it must've been the past half hour, the voice said something he agreed with. _**'And how do you intend to do that?'**_

"I-" he paused. How does one get rid of a disembodied voice? He eyed his books. No, there was nothing there, no matter how much he wished there was.

 _' **Books aren't going to save you here, I thought we covered that.'**_

"Dad might know," he said. "He's a teacher, surely he handled children with similar situations."

He felt the voice shrug. Didn't know how, but he did. _**'Probably. But from what I've seen, he isn't an academic nor a scholar. And since he teaches combat, it is unlikely he'd know what to do. And since I know that, that means you know that.'**_ The voice spoke accurately, but he might know someone who does. _**'Fair enough.'**_

The door to their- _his_ room opened, and considering who was at home, it could only be one person. Orochimaru turned and saw his father, in rather convenient timing. His face was hard, and in his arm was a large cardboard box. They all knew what he was here for, and Oro wasn't fond of it, but now he had a reason to stop this.

"Dad," he greeted, not happily, nothing about this was a joyous occasion. "You don't have to take my journals." He pointed towards his head. "I wasn't responsible for my actions; it was this separate personality."

"Separate personality?" Tai's face scrunched in confusion. "Oro, are you serious?"

He nodded. "Whatever this entity is, it's likely a product of a combination of stress and flared neurons."

Tai looked at him for a long minute, closed his eyes, sighed, and walked to the bookcase.

"This is proof that I am not the one that hurt the boy," he said, but Tai continued walking past him. "I need your help getting rid of this voice." He didn't respond. "Dad, are you listening?" Tai then took the books off the shelves and put them into the box. "W-Wait, dad!?"

"Just stop, Orochimaru," Tai said coldly, having him freeze in place. "I can't believe you would go and do this, just to keep your books." He wasn't even looking at his son as he took more books away. "I'm. . . I'm disappointed."

"B-But, there really is this-"

"Stop!" he yelled. "Take responsibility for your actions, Orochimaru, I won't let you skirt away from consequences of what you've done." He looked down, sighed, and looked to his son. As he said, he was disappointed and felt he shouldn't speak. "I understand you want to keep your books, but I won't allow you to make up convenient lies just so you can shirk away from punishment."

"I. . . B-But-"

Tai snapped to him with a look on his face he didn't think he'd ever seen. "You've been a mild-mannered boy for so long, I didn't know what would happen if you faced other kids your age." He stood up with the cardboard box filled with the journals he'd given Orochimaru. "I love you, son, you're my pride and joy, but today, you disappointed me, more than once." He opened the door. "You're going to learn, Oro, something that you can't just read in a book."

Oro looked to his feet. _'Am I making excuses?'_ Yes. _'Was the voice correct? Did I stab the boy?'_ Yes, undoubtedly. He still saw specks of blood on the wrists of his shirt. _'Was it my fault?'_

"I called a friend of mine," Dad said, but Oro feared to look at him. "I think he can help a bit, but he won't be free for another two months, and that's how long you'll be grounded, two months." He didn't have it in him to argue anymore. "I'll call for you when lunch is ready." Then he closed the door he left.

When the door clicked shut, Oro walked to his bed and sat atop it. He would've sat at his desk, but it reminded him of his journals, and those reminded him of everything that happened the past ten minutes. He just needed some softness at the moment.

The bookshelf was empty, he couldn't have a calming read of an intricate chemical algorithm or the complex functions of certain glands and their respective secretions. He had to find a different way, and that usually required some silence and solitude for thought, sadly, that was no longer possible.

 _' **You were never alone, you just couldn't hear me.'**_ He wished that was still the case. _**'Ah, you hurt me.'**_ He wished he could do that more than anything. _**'I see you haven't changed since this morning.'**_

"Shut up!"

 _' **You had your solitude the past five years, it's best now you learn to adapt.'**_

Adapt, that was a word used in almost every journal about biology. A technique beings used to survive the obstacles that came upon them, like how he's recalling information he read.

 _' **So you are doing, and so here we are. However, it would take more than that to get rid of me.'**_ Was there a way to get rid of him? _**'None that I know of, and if I did, I wouldn't tell you.'**_ If it knew, would that have meant he would've known? _**'Ah, a fair theory, one that holds merit.'**_ He didn't want theories! _**'Yes, yes, you want life to return as it was.'**_

"How do I do that?" he mumbled, not really expecting an answer, but he got one.

 _' **Simple, really.'**_ He was almost excited to hear that would-be answer. _**'You don't.'**_

* * *

 **I wonder, how would you react if you had an independent entity in your mind that only you can interact with? Hide no secrets, no shame, no desires you don't want known, your privacy literally becoming nonexistent. Kinda creepy, if you ask me.**

 **Reviews are appreciated!**


	6. Single Sinner

.

 **Chapter 6**

 **Welcome back, miss me?**

* * *

 **Chapter Six: Single Sinner**

Dinner was a quiet affair, much quieter than what Orochimaru was usually used to. Yang and Ruby weren't as loud and talkative as they were before, and often sent looks of pity his way.

 _' **Possibly because they heard about what you did.**_ _'_

Oro licked the sides of teeth, holding himself back from screaming at the incorporeal entity, or most likely a mental delusion. He could still somehow _feel_ the roll of the eyes in the back of his mind.

"Oro," his father called, immediately having his attention. "A friend of mine is coming tomorrow afternoon, we're going to talk about your future, and you're going to be there."

"Yes, dad," he simply answered. No negotiations, not that there was a need for it, his books were confiscated, school was an obvious no-go, so there was really no other option nor excuse.

And again, back to the sounds of clinking silverware on glass plates. He looked to his sisters, both giving him assuring smiles and nods, a gesture he welcomed.

 _' **Bah! If they want to be on your side, they'd say something.**_ _'_ The voice didn't know, never could. ' _ **Oh, I know plenty, like how they're not saying anything because they agree with your punishment.**_ _'_

"Oro, you okay?" Yang asked, the annoyance appearing on his face. Or perhaps it was the tight grip on his fork, dealer's choice.

"Nothing, just thinking," he said, his chair scraping as stepped away from the table. "Thank you for the food, I'll be in my room." He calmly went up his stairs to reach it, a stark contract from what he felt.

 _' **Would you stop being so immature? You stabbed a child; it'd be unusual if they didn't think you deserved some form of punishment.**_ _'_ The voice chuckled. _'_ _ **Congratulations, you have normal sisters.**_ _'_

Once the door to his room shut, he went to his bed, knelt by it, pushed his head onto the mattress with as much force as he could muster in pure frustration. What was he supposed to do!? This voice just wouldn't leave!

 _' **Do we need a repeat of our previous conversation?**_ _'_ If he ignored it, would it eventually leave? _'_ _ **Try your luck, though I wouldn't count on it.**_ _'_ Perhaps he should just accept he was mentally unstable, see if he could get help. _'_ _ **Again, previous conversation.**_ _'_

"Shut up!" he shouted, though smothered. His hands came up and grabbed his own head, pressing it to form some sort of pain more than this headache was capable. "Why can't you just leave me be!?"

 _' **You can whine all you want, you can even perform some pathetic excuse for self-inflicted pain, but the fact of the matter is I'm not leaving.**_ _'_ The voice was a constant source of annoyance the past few hours. _'_ _ **If you truly want to get rid of me, then the only option is ending your own life. I'm tied to you, whether you like it or not.**_ _'_

Ending himself? He took his head out of the bed and looked to the window.

 _' ** _Ha_! Do it, I'm annoyed by your childishness enough that I'd appreciate the silence. Though be warned, the fall won't be enough. A broken leg at worst.**_ _'_ He wasn't going to do such a thing! _'_ _ **I know, but I also know you were considering it, if for at most a split second.**_ _'_

Someone knocked on his door, tearing him away from this particularly unpleasant bout with his disembodied voice. He stood up, dusted himself, and breathed a deep calming breath. This day wasn't getting any better.

"Come in."

The door opened, revealing Yang, waving her hands and a warm smile. "Hey, Oro, you looked like you could use some company."

Less company, actually, but he didn't have it in him to tell her that

"Thanks, Yang, I appreciate it." He didn't but wouldn't stop her as she came and sat on his bed nearby.

"You wanna talk?" she asked.

Talking was the last thing he wanted. "What is there to talk about? I'm being punished for actions I barely remember committing." That wasn't his fault. He ignored the tired groan in his mind. "Done in a fit of anger I didn't think possible. The situation is clear, I doubt talking would be helpful."

His sister didn't look bothered, she just sat there and listened. "Why'd you did you stab the kid?"

 _' ** _Did_ n't you just explain it? Even if it was purely false. And here I thought she was the mature one.**_ _'_

Quiet! "Like I said, I did it in blinding anger."

"I'd believe that more if you looked like you believe it."

 _' ** _H_ o~, I changed my mind, I like her again.**_ _'_

His headache continued to grow. "It's the truth, Yang. I got angry to the point my hand moved on its own."

"Why'd you get angry? Did they guy bully you?"

 _' ** _Wo_ rse, the child got in his way.**_ _'_ Shut up!

"No, he didn't do anything particularly bad."

She tilted her head in confusion. "Nothing 'particularly bad'? So he did _something_ at least, right?"

 _' ** _Bes_ ides never closing his mouth?**_ _'_ I said be quiet! _'_ _ **I'm just reading out your beliefs, I'm not to blame.**_ _'_

Yang got up and approached him. "Oro, give me anything, just one reason so I can talk with dad about."

 _' ** _Ho_ w adorable, she's trying to side with you, but you can't give her a reason to, can you?**_ _'_

"I-It's not that simple, Yang." His head was pounding, every sound he heard was like drill into his ear.

"It's alright, I'm here to talk, so talk to me, let me help you." She grabbed his hands, likely for assurance, but only compounded the pain he was going through.

 _' ** _Per_ haps she should've been there to deal with the rat, might've made things easier.**_ _'_

"SHUT UP!" he screamed angrily, slapping her hands away, then looked to Yang, who took a step back as he approached. "That foolish boy wouldn't shut up, he kept pestering me for attention that he did not deserve. I got tired of his incessant whining and minded my own business, but he wouldn't leave me be."

The boy's annoying voice surfaced to his mind again, the frustrating entitlement for something he hasn't earned, but he demanded regardless. He got annoyed by it, decided to leave him to his own devices, and he picked up a journal to read, tuning out that micro sized-brained fool. Once he tore his book away, he got the attention he deserved, the one he wanted so badly, just not the way he expected.

"I tried, I really did, but I just couldn't stand it. The idiotic things he was talking about, the simple subjects that 'school' was trying to teach me, I broke. I grabbed that idiot's pen and gave him _exactly_ what he deserved. What else could've happened!? Tell me, Yang, what else could I have done!?" He paused for a blink, not expecting an answer. "TELL ME!"

And just like that, like a rubber band, everything snapped back into reality. The first he really noticed was the face Yang was making, it was hard to describe.

 _' ** _Fe_ ar, boy, that is fear.**_ _'_ W-What!? _'_ _ **Not in the way you're thinking. This is one born from concern. She's afraid FOR you.**_ _'_

"I-" Orochimaru stuttered as he backed up, he didn't know what to say. "I- I'm sorry, Yang, I didn't. . ." What was it he didn't intend to do? He breathed heavily, and watching his sister's face pained him, so he turned, he faced the nearby window, anything, as long as it wasn't her. "Please leave."

"Oro-"

"Please leave, Yang, I need to think. I am not in the right state of mind at the moment." His words felt stiff, fake even, he just wanted to be alone. "Please. . ."

Seconds of silence ticked by, a rare occurrence he didn't think he'd have, but he heard Yang finally shift, leaving his bed and walk away. He heard his door open, and just before Yang left, she had some parting words. "I'll be here when you need me. Talk to you later, kay?"

He wanted to burst out laughing, but this knot in his throat wouldn't let him. "Okay, Yang, thank you." The door clicked shut, and he collapsed on his knees. "I'm tired."

 _' ** _A_ fter all that, I wouldn't doubt it.**_ _'_ For some reason, he hoped the voice would go away, but it was wrong to hope. The voice hummed in agreement.

"What happened to that boy, it was me, wasn't it?" Why? His family knew there wasn't anything that'd indicate he'd so something like this, what happened?

 _' ** _Y_ ou're only five-years of age, we are finally seeing an interaction out in the field, not a simulated and controlled setting. I'd say we have more similar things that'll happen in the future.**_ _'_ It was hard to disagree. _'_ _ **Oh, not arguing my existence anymore?**_ _'_

"What's the point?" he said defeatedly as he walked to his bed, emotions he could feel settling. "If you were to be believed, other than ending my own life, I don't know what to do to be rid of you. Besides, clearly you haven't done anything to affect me." Orochimaru stabbed the boy, and like the voice said, he was joyed to get rid of him. What's worse?

He'd do it again.

The voice laughed at his rising anxiety. _'_ _ **Calm yourself, you wouldn't stab the boy if he minded his own business, you'd just enjoy stabbing anyone who tried getting in your way.**_ _'_ It wasn't a comforting thought, not in the least. _'_ _ **Annoyingly, I am tied to you, heart and mind, worrying that you'd enjoy hurting people is baseless, we both know this, you're just concerned that you'd do this on random.**_ _'_

So, he wouldn't stab an individual simply because he'd enjoy it? He chuckled. "I am not a psychopath, what a groundbreaking discovery." He hated this, he truly did.

 _' ** _W_ hat is this,**_ _ **hatred not directed my way? Have you finally accepted the reality of your situation?**_ _'_

"Do I have a choice?"

 _' ** _No_ , you do not.**_ _'_

"Then what's the point? I'm too drained to argue with you, whatever you are."

 _' ** _I'v_ e said this, I'm the real Orochimaru!**_ _'_

Oro shook his head. "You're not, I am." It felt oddly calm, all of a sudden, or he was just too fatigued to care. "I have a physical form and independent thought, while you only have one of a two-part requirement for being an individual. What makes you think you're the 'real' Orochimaru?"

Silence, blessed silence, one he wished for nothing more the past few hours, now just a convenience. That quickly stopped as loud laughter echoed in his own mind. _'_ _ **My, such a coherent retort that wasn't crying, that outburst earlier truly cleared your mind.**_ _'_ Not as much as he hoped, obviously. _'_ _ **And here I thought you we were just starting to become friends.**_ _'_ The sinister grin, he saw it vividly.

"So we both know you're not Orochimaru, I am, but you reside within my mind, hold my memories, and experience what I do." Was it strange to say such things calmly and casually? It must've been, but he just didn't care anymore.

 _' ** _A r_ eal conundrum, isn't it? Perhaps we should go into a debate about existentialism, what makes a person a person?**_ _'_

"Or what mental disorders qualify with such symptoms." He cut off the voice's retort. "Quiet, I know full well what you intend to say, I will no longer cross out any possibilities. You're either truly some other being within my mind, or delusion born out of circumstances clearly beyond my control."

Furrowed brows, that's all he could think of. _'_ _ **You're taking this remarkably well, calm and casually.**_ _'_ He knew, which meant, as stated by the voice, it knew as well. Also meant he didn't know really why that was. _'_ _ **That you don't care anymore, hence why you are treating this analytically instead of the kicking and screaming earlier.**_ _'_

Difference was he still wanted to kick and scream for this _thing_ to leave him with his thoughts in peace, but his control of that was limited, very limited, so the next best thing? Learn about it, find out what makes it go away for good.

The voice huffed. _'_ _ **You can try, but it will only end in failure.**_ _'_

"You're not responsible for stabbing that boy, are you?"

 _' ** _I_ am not, and you know exactly who's action that was.**_ _'_ He did, but he couldn't help but stay on that last thread of hope that it wasn't.

"Am I a bad person?"

More silence, this time he wished there wasn't. _'_ _ **You're asking me? Perhaps you are mad if you'd ask a disembodied voice in your head for such stupid advice.**_ _ **. .**_ **No, that isn't the case, you're just desperate.** _'_ There was truth to that, and it frustrated him. _'_ _ **Ask your father or sisters this, I wouldn't bother with something ridiculous and childish like morality.**_ _'_

He would, and probably should, but right now he was too tired to even get out of bed. What a terrible day this was. "I wish to sleep, do try to keep silent."

The voice laughed. _'_ _ **Don't worry, I'll be here when you wake up.**_ _'_

He hoped not, but knew otherwise.

* * *

 **I like to imagine that mental Orochimaru sounds/talks like Caustic from Apex Legends. No real reason, I just think it's funny. . . that is all, on with your day.**

 **Don't forget to** **wash your hands!**


End file.
